Evoltz, a company dedicated to the operation and maintenance of 3,561 km of electric power transmission lines in ten Brazilian states and which operates in the Amazon region through two concessions, Norte Brasil Transmissora de Energia (in partnership with Eletronorte) and Manaus Transmissora de Energia, is promoting an investment of R $ 5.9 million in indigenous, quilombola, riverside and family farming communities in two territories in the state of Pará (Calha do Norte do Amazonas River and Terra do Meio), in partnership with Imaflora, through the Origens Brasil® network. It is a network awarded by the UN (International Innovation), which brings together more than 1,700 producers in the Amazon (quilombolas, extractivists and indigenous peoples).

The investment will be made available through a socio-environmental program that lasts two and a half years, however, due to the pandemic of the new coronavirus, an amount of R $ 689,576.80 is already being applied in an emergency manner to allow these populations to be kept out of contact with urban populations.

Of this amount, R $ 466,532.00 is being allocated to Coopaflora (Mixed Cooperative of the Traditional Peoples of Calha Norte), through the Revolving Fund for the Chains of the socio-biodiversity of Calha Norte, in Pará. For two consecutive months, this donation will allow the purchase 2,200 basic baskets with food, personal hygiene and cleaning items for 1,100 indigenous, quilombola and family farmers in the North. R $ 80 thousand were invested to support the maintenance of agroextractive activities, based on the purchase of production by Coopaflora to build up inventory and sell products.

The Terra do Meio Canteen Network, a production and marketing network that unites riverside dwellers, indigenous people and family farmers in the Xingu Reserve, will receive the amount of R $ 223,004.80, which will be used to promote improvements in the quality of life, protection of forests and income generation through the promotion of non-timber forest products, with the viability of the copaíba, rubber and babassu crop of 14 riverside canteens, located in the extractive reserves of the Xingu, Rio Iriri and Riozinho do Anfrísio. This action will impact more than 400 families in 27 canteens, eight mini-plants in five indigenous lands and three conservation units. For this region, 464 basic food baskets will be donated.

Through the strengthening and acceleration of Origens Brasil®, Evoltz is committed to continue making quarterly financial contributions over the next two and a half years, adding up to a total amount of R $ 5.9 million, which aims to stimulate ethical business with traceability and transparency that contributes to the maintenance of the standing forest and the way of life of local populations in vulnerable situations in the Amazon region.

“Our commitment is to create a lasting bond with local communities, encouraging them, in this pandemic moment, to keep agroextractive activities going on and support the production of local families, ensuring the supply of food and essential items, preserving them from exposure to the new coronavirus, and also strengthening the long-term forest production network, ”says João Nogueira Batista, Evoltz CEO.

“This support is essential to accelerate and expand Origens Brasil® to other regions of the Amazon. With it, we intend to strengthen the biodiversity product chains of traditional populations and indigenous peoples, helping to connect them with more ethical consumer markets, in order to generate income and appreciate the important role that these peoples play in maintaining the forest standing ” , says Patrícia Cota Gomes, manager of forest projects and markets at Imaflora and coordinator of Rede Origens Brasil®.

Donations of basic food baskets have already started to take place in the first half of May and, within the next three months, the use of working capital resources for the direct purchase of copaiba, Brazil nuts and Cumaru oil from families residing will begin. in the municipalities of Alenquer, Altamira and Oriximiná, in the state of Pará, as well as in Nhamundá, on the border between Pará and Amazonas.